IRVINE, CALIF. (Oct. 13, 2026) – Western Growers and Plug and Play have announced the four finalists that will compete in the 2026 AgSharks® Competition. AgSharks® is a unique event where startup companies pitch their innovations in front of a live audience of the world’s largest specialty crop producers to win the chance for an investment.
The finalists are:
- BioScout, an Australian startup developing an AI-powered early warning system that alerts farmers to fungal pathogens. Pitch presenter: Charles Simons, Chief Sales Officer.
- Phiex Technologies, a company developing interactive packaging for safety and shelf-life extension in food, healthcare and defense. Pitch presenter: CL Tian, CEO and Co-Founder.
- Sami Robotics, a multifunctional robotics platform for modern agriculture, autonomous harvest and data analytics. Pitch presenter: Pascal Labrecque, CEO and Co-Founder.
- Soiltech Wireless, a company that gives growers real-time field data to make confident decisions, reduce risk and get more value from every acre. Pitch presenter: Ehsan Soltan, Founder and CEO.
These startups will pitch their inventions to three industry judges and an audience of more than 600 fresh produce farmers and industry leaders during the 100th Western Growers Annual Meeting in Maui on Nov. 8-11, 2026.
The competition will be hosted by Neill Callis from Turlock Fruit Company and judged by Danny Bernstein, Founder and CEO of Reservoir; Matthew Claxton, Partner and Global Head of Sustainability at Plug and Play; and Nick Schroer, Partner at Trailhead Capital.
AgSharks® was first held in 2017; past winners to receive funding have included Hazel Technologies, Burro, Nutjobs and Applied Carbon.